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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23496256">A Bench to Share</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ADoctorARoseandAShip/pseuds/ADoctorARoseandAShip'>ADoctorARoseandAShip</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-01 10:02:06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,203</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23496256</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ADoctorARoseandAShip/pseuds/ADoctorARoseandAShip</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A short dribble of a reconciliation between two lovers, neither of which are willing to give up a certain park bench.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Bench to Share</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey Y'all</p><p>While I am not new to fanfics it has been YEARS since I've posted one (so long that all my work has been on fanfic.net lol). Recently I've started working on a large Sequel Trilogy Fix-It Fic, but have been getting a bunch of ideas for AU One Shots so I plan to be popping those out too.</p><p>This is the first one I've actually finished so here ya go, nothing too crazy but I hope you enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ben Solo didn’t know why he kept coming back to this stupid park. Just because this was where he asked Rey out that one Sunday morning, or where she told him she loved him one late October night, or where he got down on one knee at midnight under the stars and asked her to stay forever- it didn't matter.<br/>She left.<br/>It’s been over a month now, so why did he find himself here nearly every other day? He never plans it, his feet just take him there. He could never sit on that bench though- their bench. That bench was where it all happened, every happy moment in his life occured right there on that tiny beat up piece of wood. So he retreated to the small one by the oak tree instead. The one that just so happened to face the other.</p><p><br/>Which is why on a miserably sunny Thursday, when Ben called out sick for the first time in his entire career, he found himself sitting there staring down an innocent bench like it ruined his life.<br/>In a way it had.<br/>He wasn’t sure how long he was staring only that he was jolted back to reality by a sluggish young lady trudging her way to that bench. She plopped down without so much as a glance around. Very unladylike, she pulled her knees up so the edges of her red tennis shoes were propped on bench and she could hug her legs to her chest. In her oversized black tee and pale pink shorts, she looked absolutely childish in that position.<br/>But Rey Kenobi had never been one to care about appearing childish.<br/>And if Ben was being honest he’d have to admit that this was exactly why he kept finding himself here.<br/>Unfortunately, Ben was far too hurt to be honest, even with himself.</p><p>His phone was out and the text message sent before he could even contemplate his response to seeing his ex-fiancée.</p><p>
  <strong>We need rules</strong>
</p><p>Ben waited with baited breath as she just sat there. Then finally her feet came down, she dug out her phone and…smiled at it? He must be hallucinating. No, even from this far Ben was positive that was a smile. Was she happy he wanted to make rules or…wait, did she still have her settings so the notifications don’t actually show the message, only the texter’s name?<br/>She had changed the settings after Finn accidentally read a very <em>very</em> private message from Ben aloud. Poe teased him for over a week about that message. Knowing Rey, who takes about a month to get her oil changed after the icon appears (much to Ben’s displeasure), no, she probably hadn’t changed the setting back.<br/>His stomach fluttered at the idea that Rey may be smiling at merely his name, but he squashed those thoughts immediately. She left him. He needed to remember that.<br/>Her fingers moved, her smile fell, her fingers stilled, hovered, then moved again. Then hovered. Then moved again.<br/>His phone buzzed.</p><p>
  <strong>Rules?</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Yes, rules. I know you didn’t go to Finn’s pizza night because you knew I'd be there.</strong>
</p><p>He knows because he asked Finn, because he had thought seeing her there would give him a chance to...he wasn’t even sure, he had just wanted a chance. But Finn has never lied to him and even though it hurt, he was glad for the truth.</p><p><strong>You didn’t go to Poe’s housewarming because I was going.</strong> She countered.</p><p>He scoffed. After she avoided him, why would he? So she could tare apart what was left of him by ignoring him from a few feet away instead? So he could watch her bless everyone with her smile, everyone but him?</p><p>
  <strong>It’s clear we don't want to see each other, so if we had rules it'll make this a lot easier. For example, if Finn’s hosting you get to go. But I get Poe.</strong>
</p><p>
  <strong>Poe is basically your brother, so that make sense. Can I have Maz’s?</strong>
</p><p>He tried to ignore the flash of grief over her not correcting him, that she had a chance to explain her avoidance and, maybe, that she really did want to see him, but she didn’t take it. His eyes raised to glare across to her, but instead his face fell in confusion. Rey sat staring at her phone as two beautiful dogs walked past with the their owner. Right in front of her, prancing and playing with each other, and her head didn’t even twitch. Rey never NOT looked at dogs. It was the silliest observation but it got Ben to look, to really look at her.<br/>Her hair was up in a messy bun, the type of bun she sported on lazy weekends but never out of the house. She wasn't wearing a sun dress despite it being well into the 70’s. Rey always wore a sundress to match the sunny weather.<br/>In fact…finally looking, Ben recognized that shirt. It was his shirt.</p><p>“Damn…” he muttered. On the outside, she just looked like a tired college student, but to Ben, to Ben she looked like she was hurting.<br/>Was she hurting as much as he was?<br/>He blinked back down at his phone.<br/>He knew he had hurt her the last few months, she had practically begged him to quit his job saying it was changing him, blaming his CEO Snoke for all their troubles. But that was because she couldn’t see what he was trying to achieve - how this path could help him build a legacy outside of his parents shadow. How he could have created a new life and given her everything, if only she had let him. Why hadn’t she let him?<br/>Though now he questioned how much he needed that path- had been questioning it since she walked out the door - even now he couldn't let the hurt she caused go.<br/>Yes, he knew if she was hurting he was partially at fault - but <em>she</em> left <em>him</em>.</p><p>
  <strong>I want the park</strong>
</p><p>As soon as he hit send he knew he made a mistake. Rey’s eyebrows furrowed, her hand falling to touch their bench, and - <em>fuck</em>, his heart stopped - her chin tilted up to finally take in her surroundings.<br/>Panicking, he hit her icon before her eyes could make it his side of the park.<br/>Her eyes returned to the phone in her hand.<br/>He watched her watch it. So incredibly still that when she eventually hauled a breath in she did it with her whole body, like she was steeling herself for war. Her finger slide across the screen and she brought the phone to her ear.</p><p>“Rey,” he breathed for what felt like the first time since she sat on that damn bench.</p><p>“Hey Ben,” she replied, sounding normal. She didn’t sound like she immediately tilted the receiver away to cover her mouth as her shoulders caved in. He couldn't hear on his end how she threw her head back in a vain effort to keep tears contained as she wiped away the stray ones that managed to escape down her cheeks.<br/>He couldn't hear her heart breaking, but God, for the first time he could see it.<br/>It knocked the wind out of him, washing away most of his anger. For weeks he held onto to blind fury thinking he didn't mean anything to her- that she had just been waiting for the slightest reason to book it out of his life. That she may have had fun with him but was moving on with her life, that he was only a chapter to her while she was his entire book.</p><p>“So…” She spoke, breaking him out of his thoughts. “You can have Poe obviously, and even Maz’s cafe. But I want the park.”</p><p>He frowned. Through the phone her voice was even, albeit quiet. If he only had her voice to go on and through the lens of his pain, he’d think she was being petty. That she wanted the park merely because he did. But there, across the way, she ran her hand gingerly over the bench-their bench!- only pausing here and there to wipe away more tears.</p><p>“Why do you want it?” He asked.</p><p>He kept his voice soft so she couldn't hear how desperate he was to know, how he needed her voice to match the image in front of him. At first he had fought Snoke’s whispers that he could find a better partner, that he needed a woman devoted to him. He loved Rey and at one time he was confident she loved him.</p><p>But then, in these last few months she was…different. She didn’t fight when he canceled dinners, didn’t cry when he had to work on their anniversary, didn’t even flinch when he wanted to push the wedding date back to accommodate a conference. Bitterness built as he started to think Snoke was right, that Rey didn’t really love him after all, just the idea of him. So when she told him to quit because he was different, he was devastated. Ben thought she wanted the image back, not the man.<br/>All this time, he simply never realized how good she was at hiding her pain, and subsequently, her love.<br/>Her hand stilled. She cleared her throat.</p><p>“Some of my best memories are here.” She whispered.</p><p>Her breathing hitched and Ben had to close his eyes at the sound. God how could he have been so wrong? Missed all the signs?<br/>He knew how- fucking Snoke. Snoke taught him that there was always an agenda, always an alternative motive. The lessons helped guide him in the boardrooms but when had he started taking those notions home? When did Rey get so afraid to show him herself? The girl who had been shuffled from foster home to foster home, abandoned time and time again - for the first time in the haze of his grief he realized how bad he must have been to get <em>that</em> woman to finally walk away from him.<br/>She left him.<br/>But maybe he left her first.</p><p>“Mine too.”</p><p>He watched her hand drop, her phone cradled in her lap as she held her face in her other hand, her shoulders shaking. From the receiver he heard nothing - she must have muted it. He couldn't take her hiding from him anymore.</p><p><br/>Long strides brought him to her, fear delayed until Ben was kneeling in front of her, his hands tentatively coming to rest on her knees.<br/>She sat up with a surprised ‘oh’ - rushing to wipe her face when realization hit.</p><p>“Ben - I -I’m sorry I didn’t realize-”</p><p>“We’ll share it then.” He interrupted.</p><p>“What…?”</p><p>“If neither of us wants to give up the park, we’ll share it then.”</p><p>Taking a hand back, he hung up his call with Rey, scrolling through his contacts to find the main office number for First Order Enterprises. His eyes found Rey's and he brought the phone to his ear. The receptionist answered right away.</p><p>“Transfer me to Phasma in HR please, this is Ben Solo.”</p><p>Rey sat frozen in confusion, and as he waited for the call to connect he traced tiny circles into her skin with his thumb.</p><p>“I don't understand…” She whispered.</p><p>“I finally do, sweetheart.”</p><p>Before she could respond Phasma came on the line.</p><p>“Ben, are you alright? You’ve never took a sick day the entire time I’ve known you.”</p><p>“Hey…I apologize for doing this verbally, but I wanted my official two week notice on record as soon as possible. I will email you the written notice as soon as I am able to.”</p><p>Phasma began to question his choice but Ben didn’t even hear it. Instead all his focus was on how Rey's eyes widened and hope flooded her face. Fearful hope, tentative, but hope none the less.<br/>He had no idea where his career lay without this job, but he knew one thing. He would spend every day erasing that fear, if she let him.</p><p>“Thanks Phas for the kind words, but my decision is final.”</p><p>“Good,” Phasma said, “go get the girl then.”</p><p>“Working on it.”</p><p>With that he hung up the call and shoved the phone into his packet. He laid his hand back on her other knee, praying she could see his bleeding heart through his eyes, how sorry he was. How much he loved her. How he would never let her run away from him again.</p><p>“You know,” he said softly, “I have a ridiculous amount of ice cream in my freezer, and I don’t like sweets.”</p><p>She laughed softly, cupping his hand with her own.</p><p>“I happen to love sweets.”</p><p>“You’ll come help me then...you’ll come home?”</p><p>There was still much to talk about, months of hurt to sort through, decisions to be made about the future, but as Ben held his breath waiting for Rey’s answer he knew all he needed right now was for them to take the first step. Just one step. The rest they can navigate together.<br/>Rey smiled, wide and bright, so infectious Ben was smiling back even before Rey spoke.</p><p>“Yeah,” she said, “Let’s go home.”</p>
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